EIGHTY-SEVEN people who are suspected to have come into contact with a Covid-19 patient from Sabah have been screened for the virus, the Sarawak disaster management committee (SDMC) said today.

Of these, three were close contacts who were tested in Lawas, said committee chairman Douglas Uggah.

The others were in Miri (18), Bintulu (13), Belaga (48), and Mukah (5). 

The Sabah patient had travelled to Belaga on September 11 via Brunei, Limbang, Miri, Bintulu and Mukah.

He had stayed a night in Bintulu.

The Bintulu Health Department and the SDMC have been slammed for their handling of the case, in particular, one Jennifer Lawrence has made a number of allegations against the two agencies on the Covid-19 Awareness Group page on Facebook.

Uggah today said the state and Bintulu Health Departments had immediately acted upon being informed by their Sandakan counterpart on September 15 of the man’s positive result. 

Uggah said the authorities have screened everyone who came into contact with the man, including officers at the various border posts and hotel and restaurant workers.

He said the Sarawak Health Department, had also notified Brunei health authorities of the man’s movements.

“In Belaga, the Kapit Health Department had screened all the workers on the (oil palm) plantation, including people at the mill who had come into contact with the victim.” 

The 87 contacts are under a 14-day quarantine order.

“In short, the Sarawak Health Department has taken all the necessary steps to trace all those who had come into contact with the man.”

Uggah said the authorities had categorised the man as a “Sabah case” because the infection was detected there.

“He was not detected in Sarawak even though he is being treated in Sarawak at the Bintulu hospital.”

Sarawak today logged two new cases of coronavirus. 

One, a contract worker at a Kuching construction site, is a case of local transmission. The patient tested positive yesterday for the virus while undergoing treatment for cough at a private hospital. 

The other, an Indonesian seaman who was on his way to Bintulu, is an imported case.

He tested negative at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport while in transit on September 12. He again tested negative on September 13 while in quarantine in Bintulu but a second test yesterday returned positive for the virus. – September 22, 2020.